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Better Under Pressure: The Debut of Valerie Loureda

Tonight at Bellator 216 at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Ucansville, Conn., an exciting flyweight prospect will make her professional debut on the main card.

Insert: taekwando master Valerie Loureda.

Don’t let her beautiful looks fool you– Loureda is lethal.

Speaking to MMA Junkie, Loureda detailed the process, “My whole life, I’ve gone through dreaming about the moment when I would be able to fight on a platform that enables me to (reach) thousands of people.”

“I can’t believe after all these years of hard work and trying every day and just all the sweat and tears, that my moment is here, and it’s about to happen for me.”

Her father as her grandmaster, Loureda became a 4th dan taekwando black belt who fought for the U.S. Olympic team.

Valerie recalls the first time she was exposed to MMA on TV at a sports bar, “The first time I saw MMA on the TV, I was just, ‘I’m confident that I can fight there. I know I can. I will never back down,’” Loureda said.

It seemed almost immediate, but Loureda recognizesd that this was the new path for her.

“And I just believed that I deserved to be recognized as a martial artist because of all the years that I had devoted to it. I could see that this platform was going to be the one where I was going to expose taekwondo and expose who I am to the world.”

Only two years into her MMA journey, Loureda has dedicated the past two years to this moment: ‘I need to train as hard as I can, get in the best shape of my life because I need to catch up. … I know what I can do in MMA, and this is my time.’” Loureda said.

“I knew 2019 would be the year that I would debut, and I’m honored that Bellator gave me this opportunity.”

Watch Valerie Loureda take on Colby Fletcher on the first fight of the main card at Bellator 216, LIVE on DAZN at 10 PM EST.